


Gruesome Innocence

by Lupealonewithquills



Category: Gruesome Innocence, Original Work
Genre: College, F/M, Murder Mystery, Paranormal, Possession, flower shop
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-25
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-16 16:42:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 16,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29703540
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lupealonewithquills/pseuds/Lupealonewithquills
Summary: A young woman, just trying to live her life and be happy with her friends, unwittingly releases an ancient spirit who attaches to her. She must help create a physical body for the spirit, unknowing their true plans.
Relationships: Original Female Character/Original Male Character





	1. Ch. 1

**Author's Note:**

> Another original novel! This one is a lot older than Lions and Clovers, lol. I'm not entirely sure if I'll actually sit and finish this one at this point, but we'll see how this all goes!

“You got plans for after school, kiddo?” the man smiled at the sighed chuckle from the younger girl across the kitchen table from him.

“Not really, mostly planning on doing my homework and try and finish my library book tonight. Why, ya need an extra hand at the shop?”

He shook his head, leaning back in his seat, “No, but you haven’t been to the shop in a couple of days, I could use you doing arrangements. There’ll be people coming in tonight and tomorrow for anything and everything.”

The girl raised an eyebrow, then made a face filled with realization, “That’s right, tomorrow’s Valentine’s Day, I forgot about that. Then I’ll be there tonight and tomorrow, if you want. I can try and take tomorrow off from school.”

The man laughed, his ginger ponytail sliding off of his shoulder, “Nah, don’t take off from school, Shoshan, just make a beeline for the shop after school if you can, okay.” he watched her grin and nod, then looked over at the wall clock behind her, “Alright, finish your coffee and get going, you don’t have long to get to class.”

She nodded, quickly downing what was left of her coffee, depositing the mug in the sink and running to the front door, “Alright, Ramses, I’m gone! See ya after school, broham!” she heard a goodbye as she shut the door and made her way down the driveway, seeing her friend waving at her.

She grinned and trotted the last few feet towards her friend as they started walking, “Hey, Phoebe, how are ya today?” she wrapped an arm around her friend’s shoulders in a hug as the gesture was mimicked towards her.

“I’m doing good; I got the new DJ Comet cd yesterday while I was at the mall with my little brother.” she grinned and drummed her free hand on her bag; her grin broadened as she watched Shoshan’s eyes start to glitter.

Shoshan wrapped her arms around Phoebe, rubbing their cheeks together, “Phoeeeebeeeee, you know me so well! I’ve got my laptop in my bag, I can burn it from ya in study hall if that’s okay.”

Phoebe nodded, smiling, “Yeah, it’s not a problem, that’s why I brought it with me today anyways.” they both started laughing as they walked through the gates onto the school campus, after their fifteen minute walk.

“Awwww, you’ve got work tonight? I was hoping to hit the bookstore with ya. The new Gargoyles novel is out and we haven’t had a coffee night in forever.” Phoebe half-heartedly sobbed while clinging to Shoshan’s messenger bag, big puppy eyes pleading at her.

Shoshan could not help, but give a sympathetic smile, “I know, Phoebe, but I promised Ramses I’d come in tonight and tomorrow, we might end up getting swamped with customers.” she watched Phoebe’s eyes almost water as she patted her shoulder, “But, it’ll be Friday the day after tomorrow, so I can try and get you over for the weekend. We just need to talk with your folks and Ramses. Then we can go to the bookstore, kay?”

Phoebe instantaneously perked up, “Alright, I’m gonna hold ya to the bookstore thing, even if I can’t come over for the weekend.” she giggled and patted her shoulder, “Come on, we’ve got to head to class.” they laughed and started talking more as they made their way to their first period class.

Shoshan waved at Phoebe as she entered her class; letting Phoebe go to her own. She trotted over to her usual seat, smiling softly at a rather loud bird trill from the window; she raised her head as she sat down when a pair of arms landed on her desk, “Hey, Zac, what’s up?”  
The boy before her smiled, “Not much, bored out of my mind. At least until you came in.” he winked with a crooked grin.

She rolled her eyes, playfully popping his arm, “You’re shameless, geez. Were you honestly that bored?” she smiled, resting her chin on the top of her hand as Zac laughed.  
“Yeah, I honestly was really bored. I was beginning to think you were going to ditch today.”  
Shoshan shook her head, chuckling, “Nah, why would I miss out on hanging out with my fave Goblin?” she gave him a cheeky grin as he stuck his tongue out, turning his head as the door opened to their teacher, Mr. Thomas.

He looked around, “Morning, class, I hope you all have last night’s homework completed.” he could not help a small smirk at the collectively groaned yes. “Good, have them out, I’ll be around to collect them soon. In the meantime, pull out your textbooks and turn to page three hundred and ninety four.” he started to walk around the room, grabbing papers as he listened to low mumbles and the thudding of the text books.

As he came around, Shoshan held her paper out, skimming her finger over her textbook, “Enjoying today’s lesson, Shoshan?”

She lifted her head up towards him, grinning, “It seems pretty interesting, so I’m just skimming ahead, that’s all.” she looked back at her book as the teacher took her paper and went on.

Once he was done, he went back to his desk and set the papers down. He sat down at his desk, setting a pen down, “Alright, everyone. For today, I want you to read over this chapter, take notes, and complete all chapter review questions. That’s all you’ve got to do today. If you finish before the bell rings, just sit quietly and do whatever you like. Go ahead and get started.” he watched as everyone pulled out paper and pencils and began to work, he himself leaning over the papers to grade them.

It did not take more than five minutes for a low hum of murmurs and chatter to start, students huddling amongst each other to help find the answers to questions and see what notes they have and the like. Shoshan almost jumped when she felt something flop onto her head, making her look up and see Zac pulling his chair next to her, “Hey, do you understand any of this?”

She smiled and cocked an eyebrow, “Yeah, I understand everything. What ya need to figure out?” she motioned for him to sit down.

He roughly sat down and pointed towards a section in his own book, “I’m not understanding how this connects to the culture itself.”

Shoshan looked at the paragraph he was pointing at and chuckled, “That’s easy though. It’s a giant power chain. If that makes any sense to you.” she looked over and saw Zac had a perplexed expression and sighed, causing her to pull out a sheet of paper, “Okay, here’s a simple breakdown.” she began to explain the status roles of the culture to Zac as she sketched out a crude pyramid graph. She laid her pencil down and tilted her head, “You get that? Or do I need to explain it again?”

He shook his head, his bangs wrapping around his face, “I got it, no worries. I’ll probably end up swiping your notes at some point though.”

She rolled her eyes, smiling, “You really have no shame.”

He shrugged, “Yeah, but I would like to borrow your notes so I can understand everything.” he gave her his best puppy dog eyes, even throwing in a whiney pout.

She sighed, smacking her hand to her face, “Alright, Zac. If you want my notes, I’ll make a digital copy of them at study hall and print them out later or tomorrow before I get here, okay?”

He laughed and patted her shoulder, “You don’t have to go that far, Shoshan.”

She shrugged her shoulders, chewing on her thumbnail, “I don’t mind. It’ll actually give me something to do while I burn Phoebe’s new DJ Comet cd in study hall today.”

Zac gave a sputtered laugh at her reply and fell into small chit chat over meaningless topics for the rest of the period.

After another hour, the bell finally rang, signaling for all the students to go to their second class. Mr. Tom lifted his head, nodding, “Alright, everyone, go on. If you haven’t finished, finish it for homework. I want it tomorrow.” he rolled his eyes as he did not receive an answer as the students filed out the door.

Zac and Shoshan kept talking as they walked across the campus towards their next class. Zac’s voice filled with mock despair as they talked, “Aw, you have to work? You work so much as it is, you need a break.”

She rolled her eyes as she spoke, “I don’t work that much, I only work every other day. This is only different cause it’s a holiday, and everyone wants flowers.” she sighed and rolled her eyes again as she side-eyed him and could practically hear him whining like a puppy. “I know we haven’t hung out recently, I haven’t hung out with Phoebe either.” she spun on her heels and started walking backwards, watching him, “How about this, I plan on having a coffee date with Phoebe on Friday after school, and we’re going to try and get her over to my house for the weekend. If that happens, all three of us can hang out on Saturday or something. Or it can just be you and me on Saturday, how does that sound?”

She watched as Zac rubbed his chin, contemplating the idea, before nodding and grinning at her, “That sounds like a good plan. Do you have any places you want to go?”

Shoshan shrugged, spinning back around, “Not really, since I don’t know if I’ll have Phoebe over or not. There’s always the movies, for all three of us; some new ghost movie is out right now.”

Zac nodded, “That sounds good, I do like a good ghost movie.” his voice gained a joyful feeling at the thought of a ghost movie. “You still wanna go if it’s just you and me?” he turned towards her as he asked, curious as to whether she would want to or not.

She hummed softly in thought before she replied, “I’m not sure. I know Phoebe likes the new handy cam ghost movies too, so it would be a little rude to see it without her.” she gave him an apologetic smile, but she knew he understood, since he was the same way.

He grinned and patted her back, “It’s all good, Shoshan. How about this, you keep an ear out on Phoebe and let me know if she’ll be staying with you this weekend, and if not, I’ll find a movie for the two of us, okay.”

She blushed softly and smiled back at him, “Alright, I’ll be seeing her soon anyways, she might have already texted and asked her parents. So I’ll be sure to text you, okay.” she looked up, seeing the building she had to go to and patted his back, “I’ve got to run before Mrs. Lynn gets upset. I’ll catch ya after study hall, okay.” she beamed and waved as she trotted inside, pressing her bag against her side so that it did not knock her over as she ran up the stairs.

Shoshan slowed down to a walk as she saw most of her classmates standing outside the door, chatting and looking over papers. She spotted Phoebe with Jazmyn and Ben and trotted over, “Hey, guys. Mrs. Lynn not here yet?”

All three of them shook their heads, Jazmyn shrugging, “I don’t know where she could be. We’re usually later than her.” she looked down at her phone to confirm the time and looked up and down the hall, “How long should we wait?”

Shoshan shrugged as she sat with them, resting her elbows on her knees and chin in her hands, “I don’t know. I guess if she doesn’t show up in the next ten or fifteen minutes we can head on to Study Hall.” she watched them all nod as they started to lapse back into conversations.

Shoshan’s face lit up a bit, making her tap on Phoebe’s leg to get her attention, “Oh, did you already ask your parents about coming over for the weekend?”

Phoebe nodded, “Yeah, I texted my mom about it and I can’t make it for the whole weekend, we’ve got a family thing Saturday evening. So unless you want me over late Saturday night, then I won’t be able to spend the whole weekend, maybe the one night on Friday, but that’s it.”

Shoshan nodded, thinking it all over, “I guess that depends on when you’ll be done Saturday night. What kind of family thing are you being dragged to this time?”

She shrugged slightly, tilting her head and resting her cheek in her hand, “I don’t really know, I think my mom said it was like a family dinner for my aunt, but I’m not sure. And if it’s the aunt I’m thinking of, then I won’t be back until at least seven at night, ‘cause you know how my mom is.” they both laughed, knowing how true it was.

All the students soon turned their heads like a synchronized flock of pigeons as another teacher came up, “You all go ahead and spend this period in Study Hall or the Student Area. Mrs. Lynn is out sick today and no one can get a sub in yet. So, go on and don’t cause any trouble.” the man smiled as he shooed the herd of students off before returning to his own classroom.

Shoshan, Phoebe, Jazmyn, and Ben all flocked to Study Hall, since they would be there next period anyways and chatted energetically. Jazmyn soon cleared her throat a bit and stared at Shoshan, “Okay, I’m gonna finally bring it up, ok. What do you want to do for your birthday?”

Shoshan looked utterly perplexed before it dawned on her, her birthday was this weekend, she face-palmed herself, “Oh wow, I’m dumb. I honestly forgot my birthday was this weekend.” her face flushed to a bright pink, almost blending into her hair; she simply shrugged extremely embarrassed now, “I honestly don’t know. I’m going to hang out with Phoebe Friday night, and hang out with Zac on Saturday…” she stopped mid thought as she noticed Jazmyn get a knowing smirk on her lips, making her raise an eyebrow, “What’s that look for?”

The look never left her face, it only got bigger as she spoke, “I see you wantin’ to be alone with ya baby daddy.”

Shoshan sighed and rolled her eyes, leaning against the table, “Can you not do stuff like that today, Jaz? You know I’m annoyed by that.”

Jazmyn raised her hands in defeat, “I know, but what else would you two be doin’ alone together?”

Shoshan side-eyed her and pursed her lips a bit as she pulled her laptop out and turned it on, “Maybe we’d be normal people and go to the movies and hang out as friends.” she clicked her tongue slightly as she silently pulled her class notes out of her bag and started typing them out. Shoshan turned her head slightly, seeing Phoebe slide the cd over to her; she gave a small smile as she mouthed a thank you and grabbed the cd, plopping it into her laptop. She plugged her headphones in and slipped them onto her ears, relaxing as the music started; she noticed Phoebe talking to Jazmyn, explaining something to her before they seemed to lapse into different conversation.

She jumped and squeaked audibly when she felt something touch her shoulder, making her quickly turn her head; she sighed in relief when she saw it was Phoebe, making her pull her headphones off before she spoke, “What’s up?”

Phoebe chuckled and pointed at the computer, “The next class is in half an hour, you best start packing up and heading over there.” she laid a small stack of papers next to the computer, “Here’s the notes you printed off earlier. You making class notes for Zac again?” she smiled and raised an eyebrow at her as she asked, hoping she would know she was being playful.

Shoshan smiled and nodded, starting to shut off her laptop and put the papers in her bag, “Yeah, we’re on the Egyptian culture section of our textbooks in first period and he’s having a hard time comprehending everything. So I figured I’d be a good Samaritan and type up my notes for him.”

Phoebe smiled and waited as Shoshan finished packing up her bag, watching her as she decided to question her a bit, “Where you texting with Zac while you were listening to your music?”

She nodded, handing Phoebe her cd, “Yeah, I was letting him know that you weren’t going to be hanging out with us this weekend. So we were going through movies to possibly go see.”

“Ah, you find anything interesting?” she quizzed, taking the cd back with a grin and slipping it into her own bag.

Shoshan shook her head as they left, sliding her bag strap over her head, “Not really. There is a ghost movie out, but we’re both wanting to wait to see it with you, since you like ghost movies so much." she grinned as Phoebe got a sheepish smile and looked in the opposite direction, her cheeks turning tomato red. Shoshan rubbed her back slightly before she continued, “But, we still have a couple of days to look through everything, so I’m sure we’ll find something.”

She watched Phoebe’s eyes light up a bit with a mischievous light as she turned and smiled at her, “Isn’t that mummy movie you love so much rereleasing to 3D on Friday? It should be at that Imax theater downtown.” she gave a wide smirk as she watched Shoshan stop dead in her tracks, her eyes glazing over with adoration.

She had to clamp her hand over her mouth to make sure she did not squeal loudly, soon tackling Phoebe with a bear hug, “I never thought of that! Ah~! Maybe he’d like to go, who knows, ah! I’ll definitely ask!” she would not stop bouncing and giggling over the thought of her favorite movie in 3D.

Phoebe had to physically stop her from bouncing her as well, “That would be a good movie for you two to go to.” She looked behind her before she patted Shoshan’s shoulder, “And I’ve got class, so I’ll see ya afterwards before you head to work, yeah?”

Shoshan nodded and smiled, “Yeah, you have fun in class. See ya later.” she waved and gave her a quick hug before she trotted off down the hall and up the stairs to get to her own class.  
She easily slunk into the classroom and grabbed the seat next to Zac, “Hey, I miss anything yet?”

He shook his head, smiling, “Nah, Mr. Edwards went to get something while people were still filing in, so you’re good.”

She nodded and sighed in relief, she did not like being late, but sometimes she could not help it. She dug into her bag and smacked Zac in the arm with the stack of notes she made, “Here ya go. Told ya I’d get it done for ya.”

He smiled as he looked through the papers, “Thanks, Shoshan, I owe ya one.”

She chuckled and propped her chin in her hand, “If you want to. We can go to the mummy movie in 3D at the Imax this weekend.”

Zac side eyed her slightly and grinned, “That what you really want to do this weekend?”

She blushed faintly, but kept her smile, “Well, I’d love to go, since it’s one of my favorite movies, but I’m not gonna force you to go with me, cause I think I remember that you don’t like it too much.”

He smiled and patted her shoulder, “Don’t worry about that, if you want to go, I’ll take ya. Besides, it is your birthday this weekend.”

She groaned slightly and dramatically planted her face into her hand, laughing, “Oh gosh, Zac, you don’t have to put it like that.” her face turned a pale red as she turned back to him, “You don’t have to go, just cause it’s my birthday.”

He shrugged and leaned back in his seat, “Well I’m gonna take you to see your movie. What would you want to do before and after it?”

She huffed a sigh, smiling at him, “I don’t know, honestly. Since the theater is downtown, we can probably find a little hole in the wall place to eat before the movie, then just roam around for a few hours after it.” she started to run through her memories of downtown and tried to figure out someplace interesting to visit.

Zac tapped his chin in thought, running through the mental map of downtown he remembered, “That sounds like a good idea, I can find some place that sounds interesting to eat at. And, if I’m not mistaken, there’s an all night antique shop somewhere near the theater, so we could do that either before or after the movie, depending on when we watch it.”

She nodded, her smile growing, she could feel her giddiness grow as she spoke, “Yeah, that sounds perfect!”

He smiled, chuckling at her enthusiasm, “What time are you wanting to do all of this?”

She shrugged, leaning back in her seat, “I don’t know; I kind of want to stay out all day, or as long as possible. So we can always meet up just before noon, bum around downtown for a bit, eat, see the movie in the early evening, then hunt down that antique shop.”

Zac nodded, smiling, “That sounds like a good plan.” he turned his head before he could speak more the teacher finally walked in, making everyone fall quiet so the class could start.

The class went rather fast, the soft murmur of the other students as they mumbled to each other as they studied and attempted to make sense of the materials filled the air, Mr. Edwards standing at the front of the class, discussing the work for those who wanted to pay attention. Once the bell rang at the end of the class, the students were shooed off with a simple wave, making them excitedly surge through the door like a swarm of bugs.

Zac and Shoshan were some of the last to leave the room, chatting as they left; she looked down at her watch and pouted slightly as she looked over at him, “I’m sorry, since that was my last class of the day, I best head on to work, okay.”

Zac smiled and patted her back, “Don’t worry about it, okay, I’ll see ya tomorrow anyways. You have a good day at work, don’t get overworked, alright.”

She rolled her eyes, smiling as she gave him a one armed hug, “Thanks, Zac, I’ll try not to overwork myself. You behave yourself while I’ll gone, okay. I don’t want to come back to the place being on fire or anything.” She laughed as Zac gave her an overly dramatic offended expression.

He turned his head to her, “I am offended that you would think I would burn the place down. Simply offended.” he turned back, grinning widely and laughing as well, since her laugh was so infectious and sweet sounding to him. Zac patted her back again, “Don’t worry, I’ll be good and not burn everything down. Scout’s honor.”

She laughed again and hugged him once more, leaning up to peck his cheek, “Alright, I’ll leave ya to hold down the fort for me, kay. See ya tomorrow.” Shoshan turned and went off, soon dashing off after looking at her phone’s clock.

She skidded to a stop at the flight of stairs, gripping the railing so she did not tumble down and smack into the brick wall. She easily trotted down and saw Phoebe wave at her, making her trot over and hug her, “Hey, I didn’t make ya wait long did I?”

Phoebe shook her head, “Nah, I just got here myself. Come on.” she smiled and wrapped an arm around Shoshan’s shoulders as they left. They had been walking for several moments, talking about this and that, when Phoebe started walking backwards, staring at Shoshan, “So, what do you want to do for your birthday? Or want for your birthday?”

Shoshan rolled her eyes playfully and sighed, giving her a lopsided smile, “Like I told Jaz earlier, I don’t know. I can’t really think of anything, and I’m already hanging out with you and Zac this weekend, what else could I need?”

Phoebe shrugged, smiling, “I don’t know, you never ask for things on holidays or your birthday. So either we have to guess and surprise ya or turn up empty handed.”

As Phoebe spoke, Shoshan’s expression dropped a bit, her eyes starting to mist over. She barely noticed that she had stopped dead in her tracks, fidgeting with her dress and bag strap, “I’m sorry…”

Phoebe rushed over, hearing the rough, watery rasp her voice made, her knowing she was on the verge to tears, “Oh, Shoshan, mate, it’s ok. None of us are mad at ya for that. It’s not that at all.” she rubbed Shoshan’s shoulders tenderly, “We just want to be nice to ya and get you things you like. Okay?”

Shoshan slightly lifted her head up, tears dripping from the tip of her nose and down her cheeks, she sniffled slightly and wiped at her eyes. She took a few deep breaths, though her voice was still soft and cracked, “Y-you sure?”

Phoebe smiled and nodded, “Of course I’m sure, Shoshan.” she pulled her forward a bit to softly peck her forehead before she wrapped her up in a hug.

Shoshan weakly sighed and hugged her back; she pulled away slightly and wiped at her face with the back of her hand, “I’m still sorry for causing everyone so much grief around my birthday and holidays. I never realized y’all wanted to do anything for me.”

Phoebe gave her a sympathetic smile and rubbed her shoulders, “It’s okay, mate. We just want to do something nice for ya since you work so hard and do so much for all of us. You deserve it.” she rubbed her shoulders again before starting her walking again, “But, is there anything you want for your birthday?”

Shoshan softly sniffled and shook her head, her voice starting to sound normal again as she replied, “Not that I can think of at least. Cause I’m already hanging out with you and Zac this weekend, so I don’t really need anything.” she smiled at Phoebe, wrapping her arm around her as they walked, “I appreciate y’all wanting to do stuff for me, y’all are the greatest friends I could have.”

Phoebe smiled and hugged her back, “We all love ya, Shoshan. We just want to give back and make you happy.” she squeezed Shoshan as they finally made it to a small flower shop, she rubbed her back as they released each other, “Here’s your stop, thank you for choosing Friendship Airways. You’ve always got friends with wings.” she winked, making Shoshan laugh loudly as they hugged again. They waved when they parted and Shoshan made her way into the shop; Phoebe smiled and left, wondering what she should get Shoshan for her birthday.

Shoshan trotted behind the counter and sat her school bag down and glanced around, she did not see anyone as she clocked in, making her call out, “Ramses! I’m here!” she looked around and made her way towards the back of the store, wondering where her brother was. She finally found him crouched with bundles of flowers around him in the cooler, seeming to trim the stems; she knocked on the wall to get his attention, watching him turn his head towards her, “Hey, I’m on, what kind of arrangements do you need me to work on?”

Ramses got up, setting the clippers and flowers in his hands down as he walked over, “Uh, if you want you can finish clipping these bundles of roses and set them up for bouquets, I’ve got to double check some of the call in orders and we can get those setup. Then we can set up a few Valentine’s special bundles.”

Shoshan nodded, “M’kay, how many bouquets do you want me to make?”

“See how many full dozens you can make then make half dozens when you’re done.”

Shoshan nodded again, saluting, “Aye aye captain.” she grinned and spun around, walking over to the clippers and flowers, realizing they were bundles of roses and baby’s breath. She hummed as she gathered the bundles, counting them out as she started wrapping them and putting them to the side as she went. When she had all the bundles done, she got up and stretched her back, picking the bundles up and setting them on the display rack near the door before she left, finding Ramses at the front of the store, writing something down, “We’ve got seven full dozens and one half dozen and even with the baby’s breath in each bouquet.”

Ramses nodded, writing that down as well before he looked over at her, “That’s pretty good, we’ve still got a handful up here that look good, we can take them back into the cooler if we need to.” he handed her a slip of paper, letting her glance over it, “We’ve got a couple of call ins for tomorrow and on Valentine’s, so if you don’t mind taking the order forms and checking how many flowers we have for them. And if we have time we can probably make the set ups for tomorrow’s call ins tonight before we get started on the Valentine’s bundles.”

Shoshan skimmed over the list quickly, nodding, “I can do that, easy peasy. I’ll come find ya when I’m done if you don’t find me first.” she kept glancing over it as she went back towards the back of the store and cooler.

She spent nearly an hour double checking and counting and sorting the flowers until she felt a tap on her shoulder from Ramses, “How’s everything look?”

She waved her hand around, gesturing vaguely towards the barely started arrangements, “We’ve got more than enough of all the flowers, I multi-checked for at least fifteen or twenty minutes before I started on the arrangements for tomorrow.” she scratched her head, turning more towards him, “What time is it?”

Ramses nodded, looking at the work Shoshan did before he replied, “It’s not quite eight o clock, so I wanted to check in on ya. Traffic’s slowed down anyways for the night, so I’ll start cleaning the shop and cash counting; you can finish up these two arrangements and clean up the cooler and put up a few displays and we can call it a night.” he watched her nod and get back to her work, making him leave and go to his own.

After roughly a half hour, Shoshan wiped her hands on her dress, turning when she saw Ramses walk in from the back, “Everything taken care of?”

He nodded, “Yep, my share’s taken care of, how about yours?”

“Yep, I left a few displays in the cooler that way they can look really fresh when we put them out in the morning.” she grinned and patted his arm before she trotted off to the counter to get her school bag, slinging it across her shoulders as she followed Ramses to the door, trotting out the door so he could lock up.

She stretched slightly as they walked, feeling her body start to ache softly from staying hunched over so much for several hours; she spun slightly so that she was walking backwards as she spoke with Ramses, “How busy was the store today before I came in?”

Ramses smiled and chuckled, “It was pretty steady, but I could handle it fairly easily. But it’ll probably get more hectic tomorrow, but I should be able to handle the shop until you come in.”

She nodded, spinning back around and falling into pace with Ramses, “You sure you don’t want me to skip class tomorrow? My teachers won’t care as long as I let them know and I can get my work from Zac and Phoebe.”

He hummed slightly when they reached their house, lost in thought as they made it to the door, “Part of me wants you to skip school and come in, but I don’t want you to get in trouble.”

Shoshan smiled and patted his back as he opened the door and they went in, she sat her bag down by the door and slipped her shoes off, “I know, but I don’t want you to be overwhelmed and get stressed. And like I said, my teachers won’t mind as long as I let them know what’s happening.”

Ramses nodded to himself, “Then I guess if you don’t mind calling in. I would appreciate the help all day.”

She nodded, smiling, “I’m more than willing to call in and help out on a holiday. You know this already.”

Ramses chuckled and patted her head, “Yeah, I know. Now, why don’t we find something to eat, we should still have a couple of burger patties if you want one.”

She smiled and nodded, “That sounds good. Do you want me to cook or are you cooking?”

“I can take care of it if you need to take care of anything.”

Shoshan did a small curtsey, “If you don’t mind, that way I can go ahead and message my teachers, Zac, and Phoebe and get all of that sorted out.”

“Alright, I’ll call ya when everything’s ready.” he watched her salute and grin before she grabbed her bag and bolted for the nearby stairs, making him roll his eyes and chuckle as he went to get started on cooking.

Ramses went and knocked on a door partially covered in photos of animals and cityscapes, “Shoshan, dinner’s ready, come on down.” he heard a faint reply as he started back towards the stairs, trotting back down and into the kitchen. He turned slightly when he heard a somewhat bouncy gait coming down the stairs and Shoshan quickly trotted into the kitchen; they split all the food and sat down at the table, starting to eat. Ramses finished a few bites before he started talking, “The game plan for tomorrow is I’m going to need you on arrangements and bundles, since you can pump them out so quickly and neatly. Is that okay?”

She nodded, swallowing her bite of fries before she replied, “Yeah that’s fine. That pretty much means I get to stay in the back and cooler and go back and forth between there and the front, right?” she watched him nod before she continued, “I’m cool with it, you gonna be okay running the register?”

He rolled his eyes, half smiling, “Of course, I can deal pretty easily with the crowds, it’s not a big deal for me. It's the going back forth that stresses me out.”

She giggled, “That’s true.”

He smiled and ate a little more, glancing up at the wall clock, finishing his bite, “Hey, finish everything fairly quickly and get to bed fairly quickly, we’ve got a lot to do tomorrow.” he watched her nod as they finished eating in silence before they left for their own devices.

The next day was just as busy as they both thought; boyfriends, husbands, and couples alike streamed in and out with bouquets of roses and valentines bundles with boxes of candy and small teddy bears. They did not get a lull in customers until the middle of the afternoon; Shoshan stretched and groaned, laying her torso on the counter next to Ramses as he double checked the register, she half whined as she tried to relax, “That was a bit rougher than the past couple of years. I’m so sore and tired.”

“Looks like you’ve been roughed up.” Shoshan looked up at the voice, seeing Zac grinning at her, “I take it work’s been pretty busy so far?”

She sighed, propping herself up on her elbows, “Yeah, but we’ve slowed up a bit finally. Is it already late enough for you to be heading home?”

Zac nodded, “Yeah, so I wanted to stop by and say hi, check in on ya, and give ya the assignments for our classes.” he sat his bag down, kneeling with it before he stood back up and handed her a small stack of papers, “And Phoebe said she’d stop by later to give ya the other assignments you need.”

Shoshan nodded, looking the work over, “Thank you for bringing me my work. Have you been having any trouble with work in Homeroom?”

He shook his head, “Nah, thanks to your notes, I’ve been retaining everything pretty well and getting through everything.”

Shoshan made an impressed expression as she looked at the door when it opened, beaming when she saw it was Phoebe, “Hey, Phoebe! How was school for you?”

Phoebe trotted up, grinning and patting Zac’s back, “Hey, Zac. It was boring without ya, girl. I was ready to drop dead from boredom!” she laughed with Zac and Shoshan and started rummaging through her bag and pulled out some papers, handing them to Shoshan, “And here’s our class assignments, just a bunch of chapter review questions and a take home quiz.”

Shoshan flipped through the papers, nodding slightly, “Everything is fairly easy, I can get everything done before I go to bed tonight.”

Phoebe nodded, soon clapping her hands a bit, “Oh, girl! Guess what I found out today. The school is starting it’s swim team tryouts on Monday.”

Shoshan’s eyes widened and seemed to glitter as she beamed, “Oh gosh! I didn’t think they’d start tryouts this early in the year, but I’m not complaining! Thank you for telling me, I’ll have to remember to go on Monday.”

Zac quirked an eyebrow, looking at Shoshan, “You like swimming?”

Shoshan rolled her eyes, half glaring at him through her excitement, “Yep, I always go swimming during Spring and Summer when I have the free time. I used to be on the swim team of the high school I used to go to.”

Zac made an expression of recognition, nodding, “Yeah, okay, I remember you and Phoebe mentioning that before.”

Phoebe glanced towards the door before she turned back to Shoshan, “Well, we shouldn’t keep ya from work too much longer. We’ll see ya tomorrow.” she trotted around the counter and hugged her tightly before she went back to the other side, grabbing Zac’s arm and pulling him along with her.

Shoshan smiled and waved as they waved and left; she stacked the papers neatly and sat them under the counter before she cracked her knuckles and went back towards the cooler to double check the arrangements and bouquets they had, this kept her busy for the last few hours of the store being open as customers slowly stopped coming in for the day and night. She hardly paid attention to the time and was slightly shocked when Ramses told her to start cleaning and get ready to lock up.

It felt like several more hours by the time her and Ramses finally returned home, simply pulling themselves along up the stairs and to their own rooms to both sleep and work.


	2. Ch. 2

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Shoshan groaned and slowly sat up, slapping the alarm clock next to her bed. She yawned and stretched before she stiffly slid out of bed; she awkwardly shuffled out of her room, grabbing a pair of shorts as she went. After a few more minutes of moving and using the bathroom, she made her way down the stairs and into the kitchen. She smiled at the smell of the recently brewed coffee and Ramses sitting at the table already; she went to go fix herself a cup, patting Ramses on the shoulder as she passed him, “Did you even go to bed last night?” she quirked an eyebrow at him as she asked, making her way to the table and sitting across from him.

He nodded, watching her grab an apple from the center of the table, soon turning back to the notebook in front of him as he replied, “Yeah, I pretty much passed out once we got home. How about you?”

She swallowed the bit of apple she had bitten off, nodding as she licked her lip, “Yeah, though it was around midnight when I did, cause I wanted to get my school work finished before I did.”

Ramses nodded, understanding, he glanced up at her after a moment, “Hey, before I forget to ask, do you have any plans for tonight or tomorrow?”

She sipped her coffee, wiping her mouth with her hand before speaking, “Yeah, I’m going to the bookstore with Phoebe tonight to have a coffee date and tomorrow I’m hanging out with Zac, we’re going to the Imax to see the 3D release of that mummy movie I love and then we’re going to find a little antique shop downtown.” she took another sip of her coffee before she continued, “Why you ask?”

He tapped at the notebook before him, “I’m just wondering so I know when to schedule you at the shop this week.”  
Shoshan nodded as she finished her apple, setting the core to the side, “M’kay, what’s it look like so far?” she glanced across the table at the paper, hoping to see what was written.

Ramses spun the paper around and slid it towards her, “Standard on and off pattern starting Sunday. That okay?”

She smiled and gave him a thumbs up, “That’s perfect! Cause I did plan on going to the swim team try outs on Monday.”

He nodded, spinning the paper back towards himself, “Speaking of which, what time is it, do you know?”

Shoshan shook her head, downing the rest of her coffee, sighing contently when she removed the mug from her face, “Nope, but I’m sure there’s a flyer for it, which would be how Phoebe found out about it. I’ll be sure to swipe a flyer or at least write down the details for it.” she glanced over at the clock and started getting up, grabbing her mug and trash, “I gotta start getting ready for school.” she trotted over to the sink and trash, putting her things away before she left the kitchen and went back up stairs. After about ten minutes, Shoshan trotted back into the kitchen, swinging her bag behind her leg as she went hugging Ramses around the shoulders, kissing the side of his head, “I’m gone, so I’ll see ya late tonight. Don’t work too hard.”

Ramses chuckled, patting her arm before she let go, “Don’t worry, I won’t. You have fun, okay.”

She nodded and grinned, “I will. Have a good day.” she patted his back as she spun around and made her way out. She smiled brightly when she saw Phoebe, making her wave happily and bull rush her, nearly knocking her down as she wrapped her up in a hug. She giggled as Phoebe laughed and hugged back, making her giggle as she rubbed her cheek against her, “Hi~ Phoebe~”

Phoebe laughed again, “Hi~ You seem in a good mood.”

Shoshan pried herself from her, letting them make their way to school as she spoke, “I’m just super excited for tonight and tomorrow.”

Phoebe grinned herself, “Me too! Do you want to get dinner while we’re out or do you want to eat before we meet up?”

She hummed while in thought, shrugging, “I don’t know. There something you have a taste for?”

She shrugged, “Not really. Do you have enough to eat at home though?”

Shoshan rolled her eyes, used to the question, “Kinda, me and Ramses haven’t been grocery shopping yet.” she felt the half glare from Phoebe, making her face turn a faint pink as she avoided looking at her; she felt bad and embarrassed for making her friends worry about her so much, especially when she never gives those worries any mind.

Phoebe sighed and patted Shoshan’s shoulder, watching her glance at her sheepishly, “How about this, we go to the little breakfast joint you adore, my treat.”

Shoshan’s face turned scarlet red, she stared wide eyed at her, “No! You don’t have to pay for me! Oh gosh, Phoebe!” she whined pitifully in embarrassment, shaking her head.

Phoebe smiled and laid her cheek on Shoshan’s head, “You can argue all you want, but I will spoil you tonight.”

Her face turned a darker red, making her hide her face in her hands. She made incoherent noises, trying to get her thoughts and emotions expressed, but failed greatly, which only flustered her more. She uncovered her face when she felt an arm wrap around her shoulders as Phoebe laughed, “It’s so easy to fluster you.” that caused Shoshan to turn a deeper red, making Phoebe laugh merrily and kiss the side of her head as they arrived on campus.

Shoshan rummaged through her bag as she entered homeroom, trotting over to her seat when she saw Mr. Tom was not there yet. She sighed when she sat down, leaning back when she felt her sweater get tugged. She smiled, seeing Zac grin at her, “Yes, may I help you, sir?”

Zac laughed, watching her turn around as he spoke, “Nah, just wanted to say hi. Did you manage to get your work done?”

She nodded, stretching her neck, “Yeah, I got to bed late because of it, but I got it all taken care of.”

He patted her head, messing up her hair clip, “You’re such a good and studious child.”

She groaned as she fixed her hair clip, glaring when she heard Zac laugh, “Oh ha ha. What about you? Did you finish everything or were you waiting on me for help?” she smirked slightly, watching his face turn pink, finding it attractive on him.

He puffed up slightly, his face still pink, “I got it done last night, no problem.” he seemed to deflate after he spoke, smiling before he spoke again, “Which I want to thank you again for the notes, they helped a lot.” his voice and attitude changed at a pin drop, turning from an aggravated peacock to a more somber tone.

She smiled, nodding slightly, “It’s not a problem. I love Ancient Egypt and the culture, so I’m more than happy to help others learn about it.” her love and enthusiasm could be felt in her voice and seemed to grow the more she thought about it.

Zac smiled, watching her bubble with happiness, making him recall a small fact about her, “Didn’t you say you and your brother were born in Egypt?”

Shoshan blushed brightly, not expecting Zac of all people to remember that detail about her. She nodded, her cheeks still pink, “Yeah, Ramses was born at the beginning of one of their digs for the local museum when they moved here, and I was born four years into the dig. Then when I turned four, we came here to the states and me and Ramses have been here ever since.”

Zac seemed confused by that statement, he was going to question her about it when their teacher finally arrived, signaling for class to start.

Class passed by quickly, especially for Shoshan, who felt bubbling excitement all day; she chatted about classwork with Zac as they left. Shoshan waved her hands as they talked and stepped out of the building, “Have you gotten the chance to look for restaurants downtown?”

He shrugged, “Vaguely, I found a listing of all of them, but I haven’t looked through them. There a particular type you’re interested in or like?”

She hummed slightly, tapping her chin in thought, “Maybe a little breakfast shop? Unless you have a specific taste for something.” she slightly realized what she had asked for and she felt her cheeks heat up, despite the cold, beginning to feel slightly embarrassed for liking breakfast food so much.

Zac noticed the blush, rubbing her back, “We can do that if that’s what you want. I don’t mind it.” he smiled and chuckled as Shoshan’s blush got brighter, “But I will look and see what’s around, there anything you have a taste for if there isn’t a breakfast joint?”

She shook her head, relaxing the more he rubbed her back, “Nah, so if there’s something that piques your interest, we can do that. You know I’m flexible.”

He nodded, starting to push her a bit, “M’kay, I’ll make myself a note so I can look through all the restaurants tonight. Now, you’ve arrived at your next stop, have fun in class.”  
She nodded, giving him a one armed hug before she bolted off, “Same goes to you! See ya later!” she waved as she turned, ducking into the building. It took her no time to reach the upper level and dart down the hall to class; she poked her head into the room before she slid in and made her way to her seat, seeing Phoebe wave her down, “Hey, I miss anything so far?”

Phoebe shook her head, “Nope, everyone’s still filing in and Mrs. Lynn went to go see another teacher. She hasn’t done roll call yet.”

Shoshan nodded, rummaging through her bag and pulling out her work for the past day, “How has your day been so far?”

She smiled and shrugged, “Nothing too exciting so far, just normal class. You?”

Shoshan nodded, laughing, “Same.” she looked to the side when she heard footsteps and chairs moving, seeing Ben and Jazmyn sit down with her and Phoebe, “Hey Ben, hi Jaz, how are y’all?”

They both smiled, giving their greetings, Jazmyn continuing first, “I’ve been pretty good, how about you?”

“I’ve got nothing to complain about other than being sore from yesterday. And how are you, Ben?”

He smiled, chuckling, “I’m good. I forgot you weren’t here yesterday. How was work?”

She shrugged, “Eh, it was work, I got stuck making bouquets and arrangements the entire time, including our Valentine’s bundles. Which is why I’m so sore. Did y’all do anything special yesterday?”

Jazmyn nodded, being instantly excited to share her day, “Girl! We went to the park yesterday, taking a walk and feeding ducks. Went to the movies, spent several hours downtown. Had dinner and went back to my place for the rest of the night.”

Shoshan smiled, patting Ben on the shoulder, knowing he did not exactly like Jazmyn talking about their bedroom romances in public. “I’m glad y’all had a good day yesterday.” she put her chin on her hand, turning towards Phoebe, “What did you do yesterday?”

She shrugged, “I came to school, went to visit you, then I ended up getting called in last minute to work right after I visited you. Charlie ended up calling in sick and they needed someone to cover the shift.”

She winced, giving her a sympathetic expression and rubbing her shoulder, “I’m sorry, do you have to work tonight then?”

Phoebe shook her head, “Oh no, I asked for tonight off, so someone else is covering for me. I will be an extremely unhappy camper if I end up getting called in tonight.”

Shoshan nodded, understanding what she meant. Before she could speak again, Mrs Lynn walked in, smiling, “Hello, class. Please pull your text books out and turn to chapter six.” Shoshan flipped open her book, skimming through the pages as roll was called and Mrs. Lynn wrote on the blackboard.

Throughout the class, everyone stayed quiet and did their work, occasionally asking or answering questions. Mrs. Lynn looked over at the clock on the wall before she turned to the board and wrote on it, “Alright, we’ve only got a few minutes left in class, so I want you all to write down this weekend’s homework, which will be to complete the chapter review questions and complete this chapter quiz.” dhe started coming around the class, setting the paper on the desks as she went by. When she went back to her desk, the bell finally rang, making all the students partially scramble to their feet as they grabbed their bags and left, waving at Mrs. Lynn as they passed.

Shoshan, Phoebe, Jazmyn, and Ben all made their way to study hall, chatting and laughing as they went; when they got to the room Shoshan slightly paused and went over to the front desk, picking up a sheet of paper from a sizable stack before returning to her friends. She held the paper up, showing it was a flyer for swim team try outs the upcoming Monday, “This the flyer you saw, Phoebe?” she watched her nod and scanned over it again. She could feel her excitement growing as she read, starting to bounce in her seat, “Oh I honestly can’t wait! I will wreck the try outs.” she quickly gasped, smacking her palm to her forehead, “That means I’ve gotta try on my swimsuit! I hope I can still fit it.”

Phoebe laughed, patting her shoulder, “Relax, mate. I’m sure it still fits, we went swimming only a month ago.”

She sighed, “I know, I’m just bouncing off the walls now. I’m so full of energy and excitement, I can’t contain it!”

Phoebe smiled, rubbing her shoulder, “I know, and it’ll all be out of your system soon. If that’s even a thing, ya bloody energizer bunny.”

Shoshan stuck her tongue out at her, grinning and laughing as they all started to pile together and get started on their classwork. They all sat huddled together, writing down notes and talking about the answers when the receptionist in the room called for the end of study hall, making the room come to life with the buzzing of the students mumbling amongst each other as they started filing out and heading to their next classes.

Shoshan waved at everyone as she darted off in the opposite direction for her class, trotting up the stairs and seeing Zac leaning against the railing, making her pause for a moment, “Zac? What are you doing here? You’re normally in the classroom before me.”

He shrugged and straightened up and she cleared the last steps and stood next to him, “I just wanted to come and wait on ya so we could get to class together.”

She blushed softly, smiling, “Thank you, that’s really sweet. Let’s get going before we get fingered for being late.” she laughed and trotted into the hallway, not fully waiting for him to follow, since she knew he would. They made quick work getting into class, just barely getting in before their teacher. 

They sat down as he sat his bag down at the front desk and addressed the class, “Alright, guys and gals, today is a free day. So finish any work that needs to be done for this class, if you have any problems, let me know.” and with that, everyone quickly dove into their work.

Class went by slowly, since Zac and Shoshan finished their work so quickly, compared to most of their classmates who frequently asked the teacher questions on the assignment. The bell could not have rang sooner for them, making them sigh in unison as the teacher spoke, “Alright, I want everyone to read and take notes on chapter ten, we will be starting it on Monday. Have a good weekend.” he listened to everyone mumble simultaneously as they wrote down the assignment and streamed out into the hall.

Shoshan gave Zac a quick hug as they made their way down the hall, “I’ve gotta hit the road, dude. I’ll see ya tomorrow, okay.”

Zac hugged her back, lifting her up as he squeezed slightly, “Alright, I’ll see ya then.” he grinned to himself when he heard her give a small squeak. “I’ll be at your house at eleven, alright.”

She smiled and nodded, bouncing slightly as she dropped back to the ground, “That sounds good! See ya then!” she waved as she bolted for the stairs nearby, trotting down them quickly, she skidded to a stop at the bottom near the door as she watched Phoebe open the door and grin at her. She grinned back and walked through the door, she wrapped an arm around her shoulders as they walked, “You excited for tonight?”

Phoebe nodded, wrapping an arm around Shoshan, “Yep, How about you?”

Shoshan giggled, beaming, “Of course! What time do you want to meet up?”

“I was actually thinking that we either stop by our houses, drop our gear off and clean up if needed, meet up in an hour and go, or just head straight on and stay out as long as possible.”

Shoshan nodded, thinking it over slightly, “Let’s go ahead and head on and get this party started. I am getting a little hungry and we can do our weekend classwork while we’re out, so neither of us has to worry about it tomorrow.”

Phoebe nodded and grinned, understanding where she was coming from, squeezing her shoulders, “Then onward to food!” she pulled Shoshan along as they both laughed merrily and trotted along.

It took them at least half an hour to get to the little restaurant, especially coming directly from school, they noticed it was almost completely empty and trotted in, slinking into a far back and secluded booth in a corner. They fiddled around with their bags, pulling out books and papers as a waitress walked over, smiling, “Hi, girls, what can I get y’all to drink?”

“Hot chocolate, please.”

“Coffee for me please.”

The waitress nodded and trotted off behind the long counter, coming back a couple of minutes later with a tray that had a mug of cocoa, a mug of coffee, and a bowl of creamer cups, setting them down in front of them, “Do y’all still need a moment or are y’all ready?”

Shoshan slightly shrugged, looking across to Phoebe, “I’m ready, are you?”

“Kinda, but you go ahead and order okay.”

She slightly nodded as she turned towards the waitress, “I’d like a cheese steak omelet, please.”

The waitress nodded, scribbling it down, “You want toast or hashbrowns?”

“I’ll take some toast.”

She nodded as she scribbled it down, glancing over at Phoebe, letting her order, “I’d like the butter pecan waffles with hashbrowns, please.”

The waitress nodded, smiling, “Sure thing, sweetie. I’ll get those in and they’ll be out in a few minutes.” she nodded and trotted back behind the counter, calling out the shorthand names of the orders before she turned away from the little window and helping another customer.

“What homework should we get started on?” Phoebe inquired through sips of her hot cocoa as she rummaged through her bag beside her, looking through her papers.

Shoshan shrugged, sipping her coffee, “Maybe Mrs. Lynn’s work? That way we can talk and get the answers without it being too odd.”

Phoebe nodded, quickly flopping her notebook and textbook onto the table, flipping through the pages as Shoshan mimicked her. They fiddled with their pens as the waitress came around, offering fresh drinks before ducking off behind the counter. They just barely got started on their work when the waitress came back with a couple of plates in hand, “Alright, ladies, here’s the pecan waffles and hashbrowns and a cheese steak omelet with toast.” she set them down in front of the girls, them practically drooling at the sight. She smiled, “Alright, y’all enjoy. Let me know if there’s anything I can get y’all.” she smiled and chuckled as they said thank you in unison before she walked off to let them eat.

Shoshan hummed happily and bounced in her seat as she ate, making Phoebe laugh at her, she swallowed her mouth full before she stuck her tongue out, “It’s been forever since I had an omelet, bite me.” she laughed as Phoebe laughed harder. She sipped her coffee as she looked at her paper, “You got an answer for question nine?”

Phoebe glanced at the book, then at her paper, before she shook her head, “Nah, I’ve been scouring the last couple of pages before you get to the review questions, but I haven’t been able to find it. The closest thing I could find was a small section talking about quasars and nebulas.” 

Shoshan nodded, taking a bite of her food as she flipped the page and scanned through the words herself. She reread the question with a piece of toast in her mouth, soon scanning the few paragraphs again; she made a triumphant sound with food in her mouth as she quickly wrote down the answer, she swallowed her food, tapping at the text book, “It’s the process of a white dwarf forming, down near the last paragraph.”

Phoebe shoved her hashbrowns into her mouth before she leaned down to her own book and read what she was pointing at, making her hum around the food as she wrote it down herself, finished her bite, “Okay, that makes a lot more sense, how did we overlook that?” she laughed as they started putting their papers away, starting to talk about this and that as they finished their meals and leave.

Shoshan stretched and groaned, feeling her back pop slightly as they walked, “So, we’ve got Mrs. Lynn finished, I need to do my last period homework, what about you?”

“Mrs. Lynn was the only one I had to actually take care of, so I’m done. What’s your last class?”

“Geometry with Mr. Kitt.”

Phoebe nodded, “Ah, okay. He’s my homeroom, so if you need help ask, okay.”

Shoshan nodded, smiling, “Thank you. We’re just reading through a chapter and taking notes, so it shouldn’t be too hard.”

Phoebe tilted her head questioningly as they entered the bookstore, the smell of coffee, paper, and ink hitting them both like a welcome blanket. She glanced over at Shoshan as they made a beeline for the first rack of books, “What chapter y’all starting?”

Shoshan knelt down when they stopped, running her fingers tenderly over the book spines before grinning and pulling out a somewhat thick novel with several gargoyles on the cover, “We’re starting chapter ten on Monday, so he wants us to read and take notes before hand.”

Phoebe nodded, grabbing a novel with a black panther and an attractive woman on the cover, she hummed slightly as she scanned more of the books, “You want my notes? We got the same assignment and I already finished my notes. You can copy them down if you want to save yourself the time.”

Shoshan stood up, holding the gargoyle novel and a novel with Anubis on it to her breast, she smiled sheepishly, “Is that okay? I don’t want to spoil our coffee date with too much school work.”

Phoebe waved her hand, grinning, “Of course it’s okay, I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t want to help ya.”

She smiled as her cheeks dusted a soft pink and she laid her head on Phoebe’s shoulder since her arms were partially full, “You’re so awesome, Phoebe, I appreciate it so much.”

Phoebe chuckled, moving the book to her hip and wrapping her free arm around Shoshan in a hug as they left the aisle and headed to the café of the store, setting their books on the first table they decided to grab, “You wanna come with to get the drinks or you want to stay here?”

“I’ll stay here and get started on the Geometry notes, if that’s alright.” she gave her a toothy half smile as she sat in the closest chair.

Phoebe nodded, smiling, “That’s fine, feel free to rummage through my bag. Whatcha want to drink, coffee with cream and sugar?”

She nodded, “Yes, pwease.” she beamed up at her as she reached over and started digging through Phoebe's school bag, quickly pulling out the notes she needed before grabbing her own bag and pulling out her notebook and pen.

Phoebe smiled and saluted her, “Aye aye captain, one coffee coming up.” she winked as she trotted off towards the barista, letting Shoshan giggle and start scribbling down the notes. She soon came back with two drinks in hand, setting one down in front of Shoshan as she sat down herself, “Here ya go, a super sweet house blend that turned blonde.” she winked and sipped her own drink, “How’re the notes coming?”

She playfully glared at her as she grinned, “Thank you, I love them hot blondes.” she giggled at her own joke, which caused Phoebe to groan at how bad and cheesy it was, she continued after a sip of her coffee, “It’s going, I’m maybe half way done.” she glanced over at the novels Phoebe had in front of her, her curiosity piqued when she noticed the romance styled cover, “You find another werecreature romance?”

Phoebe glanced at the book cover before flipping it round to read the synopses, “I think so, and I think it’s a werepanther instead of a werewolf.” she flipped open to a page and skimmed the text over, nodding, “Yeah, it’s a werepanther.” she wiggled her eyebrows at Shoshan and gave her a cat-like smile, “Meow~”

Shoshan rolled her eyes, groaning dramatically as she went back to the notes, “You’re such a goof.” after she scribbled a few more things down she compared the papers before handing Phoebe one of them, “Here ya go, here’s your copy. Thank you again for letting me copy them.”

Phoebe nodded as she took a sip of her drink, sat it down and grabbed the paper, “It’s not a prob, man. You know I got your back.” Phoebe leaned over a little bit to look at the books Shoshan had grabbed, “What’s the one with Anubis on it?”

Shoshan looked at the book herself and shrugged, lifting it up, “I don’t know, the cover looked good, so it piqued my interest.” she read the synopses and quickly flipped to a page, scanning over the page and feeling her cheeks grow hot as she quickly set it down, “It’s a romance novel with a god. It’s someone boning Anubis.”

“Anything else to it?”

She flipped to another page to scan it quickly, “Apparently this girl has a special power that the Egyptian gods need for some reason, but she’s in danger because of it, cause Apophis wants the power to bring about the destruction of all the gods and the world so he could rebuild it the way he saw fit. So several of the gods, Anubis included, are sent to retrieve and protect the girl and get her to this place that will unleash her power the way the gods want it. And in this whole journey, I can only guess the girl and Anubis start getting feelings for each other and they bang.”

Phoebe raised an eyebrow, placing her chin in her hand, “That sounds right up your alley.”

Shoshan shrugged, flipping through a few more pages, “Maybe, it seems really well written, but I don’t know about the heavy handed sexual themes.”

Phoebe nodded in understanding, “That’s understandable. Since you’re not really into those books like I am.”

Shoshan nodded as she pried her coffee from her face, “But I’ll give it a shot at least, no harm in that.” she chuckled as they both slowly lapsed into silence and got lost in their books.

It felt like a few minutes, but was a few hours when they were pried from their books by a barista stepping up to their table, “I’m sorry to disturb y’all, but would y’all like some more drink?”

Shoshan looked at her cup, realizing it was very empty, “Sure, I’ll take another coffee, please.”

Phoebe looked down at her watch, “I’ll take another frappe and could I go ahead and pay? I didn’t realize it was so late.” she looked over at Shoshan, glancing at her books, “You want the Anubis book?”

She looked at it and nodded, “Yeah, why not, it’s a decent read.” she gave a half smile, which turned into confusion as Phoebe grabbed both books from her and her own two and followed the barista over to the counter. She came back a few minutes later, handing Shoshan her books and coffee, “Here ya go. Happy early birthday, hun.” she leaned down and kissed the top of her head as she bent down and grabbed her bag, putting her books in and slinging it onto her shoulder.

Shoshan blushed deeply as she slid the books into her own bag and stood up, hugging Phoebe tightly, “Aw, you didn’t have too. Thank you though.”

She laughed, hugging her as they left the warm shop for the cold evening. Phoebe winked at her as they walked, rubbing her shoulder, “I told ya I’d spoil ya today, How does that feel?”

Shoshan blushed heavily, “Odd, I’m not gonna lie. I’ll have to figure out a way to repay you.”

Phoebe rolled her eyes, “Shoshan, you don’t need too. It’s my birthday gift to you since I won’t be able to visit you tomorrow. You don’t need to repay me for that.”

Shoshan’s face got even redder, “If you say so…”

“Yes, I say so.” she lightly pinched at her cheek, playfully sneering, “And I don’t wanna hear any complaints.”

Shoshan whined slightly at being pinched, sighing and smiling at her, “Alright, I truly do appreciate it. You know I do.”

Phoebe rubbed her back, beaming, “I know.” she kissed her head and hugged her when they came to a stop in front of her house, “And here is your stop, hun. I hope you had fun.”

Shoshan smiled, reaching up to kiss her cheek, “I had a blast, thank you for hanging out with me and I wish you luck with the family dinner.”

Phoebe giggled, patting her back, “It’s not a problem, hun, I love our coffee dates. And thank you, I’ll need all the luck I can get through that family dinner.” they both grinned and laughed, hugging again before Shoshan made the small hike up to her door and went inside, waving as Phoebe started down the street back to her own home.

She looked around, seeing the lights were on, “Ramses, I’m home! You here?” she walked over to the stairs after she yelled, wondering if he was upstairs.

She heard a light thumping above her and the sound of a door opening, a familiar voice calling out, “Hey, I’m upstairs in my room.” she nodded and made her way up, seeing the bright orange hair, “You have fun?”

She nodded, smiling, “Yep, like always. How was shift?”

He shrugged, leaning in the doorway of his room, “It was pretty slow, honestly.”

She pouted slightly, patting his arm sympathetically, “I’m sorry, broham.”

He smiled, “Thanks for the sympathy.” he rolled his eyes, reaching out to pet her head, “But, if you didn’t know, it’s eleven at night, so I would suggest you head on to bed if you’re going out tomorrow as well.”

She rolled her eyes, smiling as she nodded, “Yeah yeah, I’ll go, I just wanted to let you know I made it home.” she hugged him and trotted off down the hall to her own room. She opened her door and threw her bag down to the side of the door, turning the light on as she stepped in. She undid her hair as she stepped in farther, setting her tie and clip on her dresser. She slipped over to the closet and changed out of her sweater and leggings and into a t shirt, turning her lamp on as she went past to turn off the overhead light. She quickly flopped onto the bed, rolling onto her side to wrap her arms around the Anubis plushie she had laying next to her pillow. She sighed as she laid there for several seconds before she reached out and turned the lamp off next to her, yawning as she quickly drifted to sleep.


	3. Ch. 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, just a quick note, but this is gonna be the last chapter for this story, at least until further notice. Not because I'm dropping the story, but just because chapter 4 ain't finished, lol. I hope y'all enjoy this chapter anyways

The next morning, Shoshan lazily stretched as she sat up, yawning loudly. She reached over to her phone, checking the time, making her slide to the floor when she read that it was fifteen after nine, and shuffling her way to the bathroom. She caught herself staring at her reflection in the mirror, fiddling with her skin and hair, making her sigh and leave.

Shoshan quickly trotted down the stairs, slipping into the kitchen; she trotted over to the coffee pot, seeing Ramses left her plenty to drink, and fixed herself a cup. She wandered over to the fridge to find something to eat, noticing a note on the door and pulling it down to read it,

Shoshan,  
There’s some leftovers in the fridge that need to be taken care of. Look it over and eat it or get rid of it before you leave, please. Have fun and happy birthday.  
Love, Ramses

She smiled, opening the fridge to see the aforementioned leftovers; she pulled the container out, looking at its contents before shrugging and closing the fridge, grabbing a fork as she went over to the table to eat. She kept checking her phone as she ate, mostly keeping track of the time, it was half past nine when she finished her food and put the dishes away. She bolted up the stairs, excitement starting to bubble in her chest as she started the long task of showering and getting dressed.

Zac stood on Shoshan’s front porch, nervously glancing at the time, ten after eleven, he sighed softly, recollecting himself before he knocked. He stood there for a few seconds before the door opened, revealing Shoshan, sporting a white thin strapped dress, making him smile, “Hey, sorry I’m late.”

She waved her hand, smiling, “You’re good, no worries. Come on in, I gotta get my shoes and bag.” She stepped to the side and let him walk in before she shut the door, “Go ahead and make yourself comfortable in the living room or kitchen. I’ll be back in a sec.” she patted his back as she made a bee-line for the stairs, readjusting the straps of her dress as she went.

She came back down a few minutes later, fixing her caplet so the clasp stayed in the center of her chest. She smiled when she saw him sitting in the kitchen, fidgeting with his hands; she walked in, making him look up quickly, “Let me put up this note for Ramses and we can go.” she patted his shoulder as she went past him over to the fridge, tacking a piece of paper up with a small bunny magnet. She spun around, letting her hair and clothing wrap around her then correct itself, she walked over as Zac started to stand, “Shall we?” she extended her hand out, letting Zac take hold of it as they made their way out.

Downtown was quiet that morning, much to their surprise and relief, letting them enjoy their walk. Shoshan turned towards him when they got to a crosswalk, waiting to pass, “What do we do first?”

Zac shrugged, looking at his watch, “That’s up to you. It’s twelve thirty now. I was thinking of eating around six and I got tickets for a seven thirty showing. We’ve got the whole day to ourselves, what do you want to do?”

She tapped her chin, humming as she thought, “Hmmm, I don’t know, you wanna just bum around and see what we can find?”

He slightly nodded, smiling, “That sounds like a plan. We do need to find that antique shop.” he watched her smile brightly starting to bounce in excitement at the thought; she wrapped herself around his arm to attempt to stop herself, making him blush, “I take it you like that plan?”

She nodded eagerly, grinning brightly, “Yep! You wanna start on this side and work over towards the Imax or go over there and stay there?”

It was his turn to think as they went across the road and started going deeper into town. He shrugged, “Let’s start on this side and make our way over.”

Shoshan nodded enthusiastically, spinning slightly and saluting, “You got it, Captain.” she winked and laughed, making him laugh as well as they walked on.

They laughed and chatted as they wove their way through various shops, trying to waste time and slightly avoid the slowly growing crowds as the sun started setting. As they walked along, Shoshan stopped midstep, looking at a store before they passed; she could see a few old looking wall decorations and other décor through the window, making her walk over to take a closer look. She noticed a wooden sign in the window of the door with the name Shepard Oddities and Antiques and the store hours were painted under it. She looked back at Zac, who stopped and waited on her, she walked back over, pointing her thumb at the door, “I think that antique shop is the one you were talking about. They’re open from eight to dawn.”

Zac made a slightly impressed facial expression as he looked through the windows, seeing what could be seen, “You wanna check it out after the movie?”

She nodded, smiling, “Yes, please. If you’re okay with it.”

Zac he chuckled and patted her back, smiling back at her, “I’d be happy to. I did promise to take you to the all night antique shop tonight after all.”

She chuckled, blushing softly, “I kinda forgot you said that.” they started walking again, Shoshan starting to feel eager to go to the antique shop. When they got to the end of the street, Shoshan glanced up at the street sign, feeling her eyes widen in excitement, she tapped Zac’s arm and pointed over at the sign, “Dude, this is only two streets away from the Imax!”

“Oh cool! That’ll make it easier to get too later,” he smiled then glanced down at his watch, he patted her shoulder and motioned for her to follow, “Come one, it’s five after six. You getting hungry?”

She shook her head until she stopped and blushed brightly, her stomach growling loudly. She did not realize how hungry all the walking and excitement had made her. Her blush got darker hearing him chuckle, patting her shoulder and starting to lead her down the street. She looked around and tilted her head, watching the shops go by until they stopped in front of a pizza shop, she smiled as she wrapped her arm around his, noticing him glance at her to see if she approved, “This sounds good, it has been a while since I’ve eaten pizza.” she grinned as he smiled, sighing softly as he led her inside. They both sighed contentedly once they entered the warm building after being in the cold for so long. Shoshan glanced around at the restaurant, seeing the variety of people enjoying themselves in the quaint and friendly atmosphere. She enjoyed the feel of the place and the deep smell of baking bread, cheese, and tomato with a few spices.  
They watched as the shop’s hostess bounced towards them from around the corner, beaming at them as she chirped, “Hello, just two tonight?” she watched them nod, grabbing menus and plates, before she motioned for them to follow and led them to a seat. She smiled as she backed away and let them sit, “Y’all enjoy, your server will be with y’all shortly.” she smiled again as she left.

It was not long before a fairly tall man came over, looking roughly their age or just older than them with bright orange hair pulled back into a ponytail, he smiled pleasantly, “Good evening, guys. My name is Almos and I’ll be taking care of y’all. What can I get y’all to drink?”

Shoshan chewed on her lip in thought, shrugging as she looked up at him, “I’ll take a sweet tea, please.” she watched him scribble it down before his piercing green eyes trained on Zac.

He shrugged himself, “I’ll take a sweet tea, too.”

Almos nodded, scribbling the order down, smiling, “I’ll get those for ya while y’all look everything over.” he gave a quick nod as he turned and made his way to the kitchen.

They quickly buried their heads in the menus, browsing the selections, Shoshan looked up at Zac, “What do you want to do? You wanna split one?”

He shrugged into a nod, “That sounds like a good idea. What kind of toppings you like?”

“I’m pretty partial to Supreme pizzas. What about you?”

“I am too, I’m not a big fan of mushrooms, though.”

Shoshan giggled, “You can give ‘em to me then. I like mushrooms.”

Zac playfully smirked and raised an eyebrow, “Really? I didn’t know you like hallucinogenic items.”

She glared at him, sticking her tongue out before she grinned, “It’s the only way I get to see you.”

He looked overly insulted, giving her his best offended voice, “Well, if that’s how it is, then I’ll never give you shrooms again.”

They both burst into laughter as their server came back and sat their drinks down, smiling as he pulled his notebook out, “What have we decided on?”

Zac nodded, “We’d like the supreme pizza for two.”

He nodded, scratching at his notebook, “That all for ya?” he watched them nod as they handed over their menus. He smiled, “Alright, I’ll get that in for y’all. It’ll be out as quickly as possible.” his smile got wider as he turned and left.

Shoshan smiled and rested her chin in her hand, lazily scanning the restaurant, “This is a cute little shop. Thank you for bringing me.”

Zac nodded and waved his hand, “It’s not a problem. It’s your birthday after all, so I wanted to surprise ya and do something nice.”

Shoshan blushed brightly, smiling softly, her voice coming out just as soft, “You’re very sweet, Zac. I truly appreciate all of this.”

It was his turn to blush brightly, being caught off guard by how soft and gentle her voice became, making him quickly grab his drink and half hide his face, “Don’t mention it…” he chugged a portion of his drink as she kept smiling, them soon starting into a new conversation.

It was not long until their server returned and set a decent sized pizza down on the table, “One supreme for two.” he grinned when he saw them go slightly wide eyed at the sight; he glanced at their drinks, seeing they were fairly empty, and trotted over to a nearby counter to grab a pitcher, coming back and filling their glasses. He smiled when they both gave thank you’s, nodding, “You’re so welcome. Y’all enjoy, let me know if y’all need anything.” he smiled again as he left for another table.

They each grabbed a piece, getting slightly excited at the stringy melted cheese as they sat their pieces on their plates. Zac started picking off the mushrooms on the pieces he had grabbed, laying them on Shoshan’s plate, “There ya go, since you said you would take them.”

She chuckled, grabbing them and popping them into her mouth, grinning, “Thank you, they’re actually pretty good.”

He nodded after he took a bite, smiling, “It is, this is a lot better than most delivery places.”

Shoshan giggled as she ate, them lapsing into partial silence. After a while, Shoshan leaned back, stretching and rubbing her stomach slightly, smiling, “That was good. Thank you again, Zac.”

He chuckled, setting his plate with hers and putting them on the pizza tray, “It’s not a problem, I’m glad you enjoyed it.” he checked his watch, seeing it was finally ten after seven, he glanced around, seeing their server come by, making him wave him down, “Could I get the check, please?”

He nodded, “Yeah, give me two seconds.” he smiled as he trotted off to a small corner counter, soon coming back with a small piece of paper, “Here ya go.”

Zac looked at the ticket, nodding as he reached into his pocket to pull out his wallet and set a card down on it. He watched him nod, picking up the paper and card and trotted off back to the corner; he soon came back with the paper and card and sat them down with a pen, “Here ya go, the top copy is mine for you to sign and the bottom copy is yours to keep.”

Zac nodded, slipping his card and wallet back into his pocket, before he signed the paper and left a tip. He slid it to the side, glancing over at Shoshan, “You ready to head out?”

She glanced at her phone for the time, slightly shrugging, “We can, it’ll give us a chance to get some good seats before everyone starts coming in.”

“That’s true, and you deserve the best seat in the house.” he laughed as they started to slide out of the table and left.

Shoshan visibly shivered when they stepped outside, realizing the temperature had dropped as the sun had set. She wrapped her cape around her arms slightly as they walked, mentally smacking herself for not bringing her own jacket. She saw the large Imax building approaching , making her start to get excited. She eagerly darted towards the door when they got closer, pulling Zac along by his arm; they stepped inside, eager to escape the cold. Shoshan stood near the concession stand, looking at all the available items as Zac went off to show the tickets. 

After about five minutes, Zac went over to Shoshan, handing her a ticket stub, “Here’s your ticket. You want anything for during the movie?”

Shoshan shook her head, “Nah, I’m pretty full from dinner. Do you?” she watched him shake his head, making her nod. She looked down at her ticket then up at the signs and wrapped her arm around his, starting to pull him along, “Come on, let's get this show on the road!” she grinned as they made their way to the auditorium.

The auditorium was expansive, just larger than a normal movie theater auditorium. They glanced around and walked up the stairs before Zac, deciding on a row of seats to go down, stopping and sitting dead center. He glanced over at Shoshan, noticing she was fidgeting with her seat, “You okay?”

She looked over and nodded, “Yeah, I’m just trying to get comfortable without my dress going everywhere.” she laughed as she finally sat down, glancing up at the screen and smiling, “This is the perfect seat.” she leaned into his side as he laughed, soon chatting as people started to slowly filter in.

The auditorium barely got half-filled when the lights began to dim and trailers for various movies coming to Imax began to play. Shoshan felt her excitement resurface as the movie began to play, making her bounce in her seat. She swayed from side to side slightly as the opening score began to play, making her smile uncontrollably.

Throughout the movie, Zac occasionally glanced over at Shoshan, seeing her attention was glued to the screen. He smiled, noticing her eyes following every move of the characters, not once looking away. With all the fun they both were having, it was hard for them to believe it had been two hours once the movie finally ended. They both stretched and groaned as they slowly stood up, getting the stiffness out of their bodies. They slowly followed the flow of people out of the auditorium, talking as they went.

Shoshan bounced and spun around once they got to a more open area, her energy finally needing to be released. “Ah~ I love that movie to no end! Thank you so much for putting up with it for me, Zac.” she smiled and jump hugged him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

He blushed and laughed, hugging her back, “No worries. I know you adore that movie, so the least I could do is watch it with ya.” he rubbed her shoulder as they headed for the door, “Now, let’s go and check out that antique shop.” he grinned when she nodded eagerly, letting him lead them out.

The antique shop they had seen earlier was finally open for the night, a street light illuminated the door and soft light could be seen from the windows. Once they entered, Shoshan started turning her head like a bird, greedily taking in everything she saw. There were a lot of things that would be used for home décor, from furniture to statues and wall art to garden ornaments; it all ranged from culture based items to obscure items that would be used in medical classes. Shoshan’s eyes glittered as she looked around, leaning down to look at things and tenderly run her hands over them as she went. Both Shoshan and Zac jumped when they heard a low, gravelly voice speak to them, neither of them really expecting another person, “Hello, young ones. Welcome to my antique shop. Is there anything I could help you find?” they both glanced around fairly quickly, soon noticing an almost withered looking man, sitting hunched over behind the register counter.  
Zac shook his head, smiling sheepishly at the man, “Not that we can think of, we’ve never been in here before, so we’re just browsing. Thank you for the offer.” he watched the man nod, allowing him to wander over to where Shoshan was, looking at what she had found.

Shoshan hummed to herself as she lifted items to look at them before putting them back in their places and moving to the next item. After a while of uncharacteristic silence she came across a small section near one of the back corners that showed a lot of small figures and dolls. She did the same thing she did to the other items, picking them up and setting them down one at a time; she paused and held a doll for a time, studying it intently. It was a medium sized doll in her hands and extremely soft, it was of a pharaoh with two almost gold eyes. “I see you are drawn to Apep.” Shoshan nearly squeaked from being startled, spinning around to look across the building at the old man, the doll still clutched in her hands.

“Apep? I don’t think I recognize the name.” she felt her curiosity grow as she walked over to him, hardly noticing whether Zac followed her or not. She stood in front of him, looking between him and the doll, “What can you tell me about him?”

He seemed to study her face intently, nodding as he spoke, “There is not much known about him. He was a very brutal ruler, the short three years he ruled. He also was one of the few rulers to have the largest and mightiest kingdom.” as he spoke, he noticed her listen intently, hanging on every word. Once he was finished he paused for a few minutes, watching her, before speaking, “You wish to take the doll. I can see that sparkle in your eyes.”

Her cheeks turned pink as she looked down at the doll and studied him, biting her lip roughly in thought. Her mind screeched to a halt as she stared at the doll, gazing at it’s yellow eyes, soon tucking him into her arm to rummage through her bag for her wallet. Her heart shattered and her stomach dropped, finding out she had left her cash at home and only had a bank card with her. She glanced over towards the cash register, feeling her stomach sink more as she saw there was not a place for any cards. She bit her lip as she defeatedly went to set it back down, weakly whispering, “I can’t take him today…”

The shopkeeper nodded, feeling sympathy for her, “He shall be here, waiting for you, Miss.” he quietly watched her turn and begin to leave, moving past Zac without really paying him any mind.

Zac watched as she walked by, his heart breaking at how shattered she seemed. It looked like she was not the same person, like she was a lost and empty shell, devoid of everything that made her who she was. He quickly moved to pat around for his wallet, pulling it out as he quickly went over to the shopkeeper, blurting out, “How much does the doll cost?”

The shopkeeper looked up at Zac, seeing the determination on his face, making him smile; he glanced back at Shoshan, noticed she had stopped and stared at them, his focus soon went back to Zac, “For you and this dear lady, only five dollars.”

Zac smiled, quickly pulling out the money as he followed the man to the cash register to pay. He sighed in slight relief as he paid, smiling, “Thank you so much, sir.”

He smiled, “Do not worry. I know he will be in good hands.” he glanced up at him, then turned his attention over to Shoshan, who seemed completely out of everything, “I must warn you… He tends to be..odd. But he is yours, Miss. I am certain he will be in a loving home.”

Shoshan almost hesitantly walked back to the stand with the doll and tenderly picked it up. She clutched it to her breast as she walked back to both men, slightly bowing at the shopkeeper as she spoke, “Thank you so much, from the bottom of my heart. I don’t have the words to express the gratitude that I feel.”

The man simply smiled at her, “There is no need to worry. I saw the pull he had on you and I knew he was destined to be yours, one way or another.” his smile never faded, seeming to almost give his words an eerie, cryptic tone.

Zac and Shoshan slightly glanced at each other and they gave off more thank you’s and left. They paused for a moment as they left the warmth for the cold, shocking them slightly as they started down the street. They walked in silence for a while, Shoshan glancing down at the doll occasionally; she hugged it tightly, glancing over at Zac, “Thank you, Zac. That was one of the sweetest things you could have ever done for me.” she hugged him tightly, taking a few seconds to let go.

Zac blushed and hugged back, rubbing her back, “It’s all good, you know I’ve got your back if you ever need it. And consider it another birthday present from me to you.” he smiled at her, leading her across the street. 

Shoshan smiled herself, clutching the doll tightly as they left the city.

When they arrived back at Shoshan’s house, neither of them really wanted to part, but knew they had to. They walked up to the front door, seeing the lights were on, she turned and smiled, “Well, I guess this is good night. I had a great time today, Zac, I truly did, thank you so much.”

He smiled, rubbing her arm, “Yeah, it is that time of night. I’m glad you had fun, you deserved it. Especially on your birthday.”

She chuckled, hugging him around the neck, “You are a super sweet guy.” she giggled as she felt him squeeze her back and lifted her up slightly. When they pulled apart enough, Shoshan leaned up and gave him a soft kiss on the lips. She soon pulled away, smiling as they both blushed brightly, Zac seeming a little more dazed than her. She giggled, making him come back to his senses slightly, “Good night, Zac.”

His blush got deeper as he smiled, shyly letting her go, “Yeah, good night. Have a good day at work tomorrow, okay.”

“You too. Don’t get in trouble, okay.”

He nodded, chuckling, “I can’t make any promises.” they both laughed as Zac turned and left the porch, waving back before he left the yard and went down the street. Shoshan smiled, rubbing her lips before she went inside.

She locked the door once it was closed, “Ramses, I’m home!” she looked around and saw him poke his head out of the living room, grinning at her, making her confused, “What’s with the grin?”

He simply shrugged and kept grinning, “I see you and Zac finally shared a romantic moment.”

Her face turned a bright pink, making her glare at him, “UGH! We’re not like that!”

He laughed, walking over and rubbing her shoulder, “I know, I’m teasing since I saw the kiss. You two have fun though?”

Shoshan sighed before she nodded happily, “Yep! Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m heading on to bed, cause I am a very tired critter.” she gave him a hug and kissed his cheek as she made her way towards and up the stairs with her new doll still tight in her arm.

Ramses chuckled, watching her go upstairs, “Good night, kiddo, and happy birthday again.” he smiled when she gave a slightly grumbled reply as he returned to the living room to sit and read, letting her go and sleep.


End file.
